jbecker6469

We were in AS7191 on the K'dam in January, which is the same position as AS7189 on the NS.  We loved the extra depth of the verandah.  While I did not measure the width or length and compared it to a center AS I have normally found that HAL's diagrams are accurate, which is why we did 7191 instead of one of the center cabins, even though they may be just a little deeper.  

The view from the aft cabins is great, and we especially enjoyed sitting out at night and listening to the "prop wash".  Very relaxing and easy to fall asleep, day or night.  You will enjoy the room no matter the slight difference in size.  We have been in a Verandah cabin twice and a Vista suite twice on the K'dam, and prefer the floor plan of the vista's if the price is not much more than the verandah. 

12 hours ago, gizmodog said:

We will be on this ship and same itinerary april7, loved the review, so you remember any movies that were shown on the lido deck?

While on the K'dam in Jan "19, we were really impressed with the new Rolling Stone Rock Room band.  We learned that after a break they would be moving on to the NS I think in March, so they should be on when you are sailing in April.  Be sure to check them out.  The female lead guitar and the drummer are especially talented.  Also be sure to check out the Grand Dutch Café.   Bon Voyage!

Departure Toot.  Our turn in a week.... Yay!

Vista Suites have the bed near the verandah and the sitting area in the middle of the room.  They are also about 3 feet deeper, but not wider, than the verandah class rooms.  They are more expensive than the Verandahs, but you do get double mariner points and a little more room.  If you book at the right time, you can get a Vista for close to the Verandah price.

Thanks for the guidance.  Guess it won't show because of the new limit on number of images at 2.  I have two countdown clock images, so adding the mariner image caused the error to show up.  Any idea if they will fix this so we can have more than 2 images in our signature?  Would be nice.

Just noticed that the countdown clock is wrong anyway, so what's the use!  Shows 3 days remaining but should show 5.   Oh well!

40 minutes ago, DeeniEncinitas said:

Will be on Rotterdam in a lanai and will be renting one! Call your PCC and they will arrange it for you!

Denise😊

Thank you Denise.  I will do that.  So used to Vista class and above having one that I didn't think about it until after I booked.

Does anyone who has sailed her recently know whether the Amsterdam Lanai cabins have minibar / refrigerator in them or not? 

Thanks.

Excellent review and pics.  We sail on her this Sunday for the 14 day Eastern - Western.  Looking forward to our first on the NA, but not our first, or last, on HAL.

5 minutes ago, Hflors said:

I just got off of the phone with our TA.  I called because out of the blue I got an invoice from her.  We booked a cruise last week that had a bump in the start, but last week we got it all straightened out.  Then out of the blue this morning an e-mail came  from her.  Knowing the problem we had last week and thinking I was missing something after I read it I decided to call.  Big mistake.  She answered the phone about as enthused as if I just cancelled my trip.  I explained and she said almost immediately "it's just a change in cabin numbers.  That's why I sent the e-mail."  I didn't know what to say.  So I mumbled something about ok.  Then I wished her a wonderful Thanksgiving and she said good-bye.   I am hoping I don't need to call again as I don't want have to talk to someone who I can just feel does not want to be on the phone with me.  

 

Thanks everyone for letting me vent.  If only I could get dh to make the final payment.  So I wouldn't need to call again.

Sounds to me like you need to find a new TA ASAP!  If I had been sent an email informing me of a change in cabin numbers without my approval, I would be very upset.  TA's get a nice commission for booking cruises, and need to treat their customers professionally and happily.  

I had a TA at one point that always seemed annoyed when I called, so I moved on.  Her loss.

Just a point,  if you haven't made final payment, you should be able to transfer your booking to a different TA.  That will send a message!

The only advantage, IMHO, of a Beverage Card is that you don't have all the entrees on your shipboard statement to reconcile against the receipts they give you.  There is no financial advantage.  Yes, you have your room key card and the beverage card, but only give them both to the server the first time you order to "activate" the beverage card.  If you take advantage of the "happy hour" specials of "buy one get the second same type drink for $2.00, you can save some money.  This even works for beers, wine, and can make a mixed drink a "double" for the $2.  If you don't spend all of the amount on a card, the balance is returned to your shipboard account at the end of the cruise, with a few exceptions.

You will enjoy your HAL cruise experience.  Be sure to book the Tamarind specialty restaurant, before you embark if possible, as it is very popular and often books up quickly.  Also don't miss the Grand Dutch Café and lunch in the Pinnacle Grill on sea days only.  Unlimited Laundry for 7.00 per day per cabin is a bargain.

I think you are right that this is a typo.  Both times on the K'dam that we had a Vista Suite, it was the same bathroom configuration as a Verandah stateroom, with the awesome large, glass shower, single sink vanity and side saddle commode.  

Having said that, leave it to HAL to change things up and make me a liar.  Maybe someone who has actually been on a pre-delivery tour could chime in.  Otherwise, I guess we'll wait until the inaugural TA and someone can check it out.

Yes, slow today and can't get it to accept a reply to a quoted post.  Maybe later.

Thank you for the detailed review.  Wish you would have tried the Tamarind, it is a gem!  Maybe next time.

2 hours ago, dam64 said:

Hi we have cruised with RCCL and Princess and NCL. We mostly cruise NCL because of the entertainment but the food is lacking lately and party crowds which we dont care for. Tried Princess during spring break a few years ago and found it dreadfully boring every evening. I see a great cruise with fantastic ports I'm interested in, its on Ms Koningsdam  11 day during March. My question is what is the average age on these cruises and will we be bored in the evenings?  I put a balcony cabin on deck 11 on hold possibly going to book it. Has anyone stayed on this deck it seems to be the sun deck curious if its noisy in the evenings. Any tips or advice is much appreciated? We are both mid fifties, thank you kindly.

Keep in mind that the verandah's on decks 10 and 11 are "juliette" balconies, just deep enough to stand at the railing.  Also, in my opinion, not a good location as you can only get to those decks from the front elevators, so it's a hike to the MDR and most other areas of the ship.  Also get the most "ocean motion" as you are up high and forward.  Also the rooms closest to the outdoor movie screen have been reported to have sound when the movies are shown.

All things considered, I would never book a deck 10 or 11 cabin.  We prefer deck 7 or 6, port side, near the rear elevators ( VD or VE).   Just my preference.

As far as ages, mostly older crowd.  Not many, but well behaved children and teens.  Families tend to do the 7 day cruises and when school is out.   BB Kings and the new Rolling Stone Rock Room are great, and Lincoln Center Stage (classical strings), dueling pianos and the awesome main theater should give you plenty to do.  

Great dining opportunities, especially the Tamarind, Grand Dutch Café, Dive In, Pinnacle Grill (Especially for lunch on sea days), Gelato are very good.

You will enjoy the K'dam.  The service is the best, cabins new and modern, and the best shower at sea!

I think you do get a "Welcome Back" or Mariner OBC for booking within 60 days after a HAL cruise.  Check with your HAL PCC or have your TA check with HAL.  I think it is the same as what you get if you book onboard, which is double the FCD OBC.

Has been the case for us when we have booked within the 60 days.

Agree with everything everyone else has posted.  We prefer Deck 7, then 6, port side VD  cabins more toward the aft close to the aft elevators.  We spend most of our time at the Sea View pool, Lido buffet and MDR, so this is good location for us.  Be careful  of rooms on deck 8, as noise from activities on Lido deck 9 can interrupt your sleep depending on what you are under. Don't care for the deck 10 and 11 cabins with the "juliette" balconies (very small) and you feel "ocean motion" being up that high and forward.  

Each letter step is about 30.00 pp in fare, starting at V to VF.  Many of the deck 4 rooms are obstructed views with lifeboats or tenders, and deck 5 look down on an orange tender roof.  

We will be on our 4th Kdam cruise Jan 4th, and have an AS Vista suite on deck 7 Aft Facing.  This will be our first Aft Facing so we'll see how we like it.  Had Vista suite 8099 on one cruise and there was a lot of "trolley" noise at night from the Lido buffet area on and off all night long.  Was very annoying.

You will love the Nieuw Statendam and all the great dining options.  Enjoy your cruise.

Having read through all the comments on this thread, I would like to put in my 2 cents worth. We have sailed on Kdam twice, once for 21 days and another with our two adult children in adjoining rooms for 7 days. We have also sailed on Zdam, and Odam and will be on the NA in November, then Kdam again in January.

While non of the ships are perfect, they are all enjoyable to us. What makes a cruise for us is the itinerary, service, food and price, in that order. HAL, in our opinion, excels in all those areas. The variety of dining options on the Kdam is a big part of why we like her. Many comments on this thread, and others, say that the NA is their favorite, and we will get to see shortly.

Not mentioned was the dry dock in December '18 where there will some reconfiguration of the "music walk" and the addition of the Rolling Stone Rock room. We are looking forward to this new music venue.

Any cruise / ship is a good cruise as long as the service is excellent, and HAL has that well handled.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I think if you pay for an excursion pre-boarding you would use a credit card. Once onboard, if you cancel the excursion, HAL will credit your on-board account with the refund, which will increase your OBC balance. Rebooking will reduce your OBC, thus it's "a wash".

Also agree with previous posters. Popular excursions are best booked early and left alone to be sure you get them. Being on a wait list can be frustrating and hard on your planning for a port visit.

We like HAL because of itineraries, fantastic friendly crew, very few but well behaved children and teens and well maintained ships.

On both of our K'dam sailings, a daily happy hour from 4-5 was offered at the Sea View Bar. Nice to come back from our off-ship adventures and take our tired feet for an adult beverage. They also sometimes had a "drink of the day" (a fruity rum punch type drink), or unlimited Pina Coladas in a hollowed out pineapple. Check the daily "what and where" or ask any of the bartenders. They will know.

It has been my experience that PG is only open for lunch on sea days. MDR and Lido Market are open on embarkation day for lunch.

Awesome! Can’t wait to report on it when we set sail 2018-12-10 right after K’dam’s drydock refurbishment. [emoji1591][emoji41][emoji1591]

Please do post a report as soon as you can after returning. We will be on the Jan 4th sailing and are excited about this new venue. Thanks.

The pitons are usually visible but very early morning sailing into St Lucia or maybe if sailing the other direction then after sailaway. P & O usually offer a Catamaran tour sail to the Pitons or a snorkel between the Pitons. I have done both and great views of the Pitons from both tours. I prefer booking with Cosol Tours who offer a tour if the island tasting the local food and a booze van following you around so that every stop you get offered drinks. The stop between the Pitons is amazing but so is the waterfall, the volcano and the sights of St Lucia.

We, too, have booked the Cosol Tour and really enjoyed it. Ours was several vehicles traveling convoy style with two couples per vehicle. Check out their website.

Don't miss the chance to try the "Piton" beer. The best, IMHO, local Caribbean beer, and I have tasted the local beer at every island we have stopped at!

Another vote for the Tamarind and Pinnacle Grill lunch (sea days only I believe). We, too, review the MDR dinner menu and then decide where we will go. On K'dam, the Sel de Mer is a favorite of ours.

We'll be on the Nov 25th to Dec 9th sailing, so hopefully will get to see the decoration progress daily. Can't wait!